Folklore and traditions
There are many religious traditions on the island tied to the period of Holy Week before Good Friday. The most evocative of these are the Procession of the Apostles of Holy Thursday and the Procession of the Mysteries of Good Friday.
The last one is based on a tradition going back to the end of the 17th century. In the procession, the young males of the island, dressed in the traditional dress of the "Confraternity of the Turchini", carry allegorical wagons (called "mysteries") of religious character for a fixed distance, from the village of Torre Murata to the port of Marina Grande. The "mysteries", often highly artistic, are prepared by the young people and generally nobody except them would have, at least in theory, seen them before the procession. After the procession, they are taken apart or destroyed.
History
During the 8th century BC the first Greek settlers to this island were immediately replaced by other Greeks coming from Cuma.
The island is mentioned by the Roman satirist, Juvenal, as a barren place. Later during Roman rule, Procida became a renowned resort for the patrician class of Rome.
Middle Ages
After the fall of the Western Roman Empire and the Byzantine reconquest in the Gothic Wars, Procida remained under the jurisdiction of the Duke of Naples. The continual devastation first by the Vandals and Goths, and later by the Saracens, pushed the population to resettle in a fortified village typical of medieval times. The population was sheltered by a cape, naturally defended by walls that peak on the sea that were later fortified, thus acquiring the name of Terra Murata ("walled land").
Modern era
During the rule of Charles V the island was granted to the D'Avalos family. Pirate raids continued during this period. Particularly notable was one in 1534, led by the infamous Turk admiral Hayreddin Barbarossa.
The Napoleonic Wars brought several episodes of devastation due to the island's strategic position in the naval engagements between French and English. In 1860, after the fall of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, the island became part of the newly formed Kingdom of Italy.
In the last few decades, the population has slowly begun to grow. The economy remains in great part tied to the marine industry, although the tourist industry has also grown.